New special license plates now available

Volunteer Fire Fighter license plate

The Department of Licensing is now offering two brand new special license plates and a redesigned version of our state’s most popular collegiate plate.

A new Volunteer Fire Fighter license plate is only available to people with a record of volunteer service with a fire district or fire department. This plate will benefit the Washington State Fire Fighters’ Association’s Benevolent Fund.

Music Matters license plate

Anyone can purchase the new Music Matters license plate benefiting music education through Music Aid Northwest. The money raised will help schools to continue offering quality music programs.

In addition to these new special plates, the Washington State University special plate has an entirely new look.

Cougar license plate

The plate now has a crimson background with a white Cougar logo and lettering. The revenue from sales and renewals of this plate funds scholarships at WSU.    

You can check out all of the specialty license plates available and learn more about costs and requirements at the DOL website.

Recent KING 5 report about DOL facial recognition program contained a false statement

Individuals who fraudulently obtain Washington state driver licenses and ID cards present a serious risk to the safety and economic health of our residents and businesses. To fight this type of illegal activity, DOL has been working with the State Legislature for several years to obtain the authority to use a proven, non-invasive facial recognition system already in use for our Enhanced Driver License program to monitor regular driver license and ID card transactions for potential fraud.

In a story broadcast during the 11 p.m. newscast on January 23, 2012, KING 5 stated that DOL operated facial recognition software for regular driver license and ID card transactions without legal authority. This is a false statement. DOL was fully authorized to operate this system as a pilot program by our state’s 2009-2011 transportation budget. This budget, passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor on May 13, 2009, contained this provision:

“(7) The department may seek federal funds to implement a driver’s license and identicard biometric matching system pilot program to verify the identity of applicants for, and holders of, drivers’ licenses and identicards. If funds are received, the department shall report any benefits or problems identified during the course of the pilot program to the transportation committees of the legislature upon the completion of the program.”

The pilot program ended when the 2009-2011 transportation budget expired. We are now working with the Legislature to make the use of this technology a permanent part of our processes.

DOL appreciates KING 5’s efforts to keep the public informed about the use of our facial recognition system, but it is important for the public to understand that DOL has not used this system in any way that was not fully authorized by law.

The use of facial recognition in our Enhanced Driver License program and in our regular driver license and ID card processes during the pilot program from November 2009 through June 2011 has demonstrated a need to have this system in place to make sure DOL is doing everything possible to protect public safety and the personal identity information of our state’s residents.

The use of facial recognition in our Enhanced Driver License program and our pilot program has identified three primary reasons individuals fraudulently obtain multiple driver licenses or ID cards. These are:

• To continue driving after a driver license suspension or revocation

• To purchase or consume alcohol as a minor

• To engage in criminal activities including identity theft

In 2011, the use of facial recognition by our agency resulted in 571 driver license suspensions and the cancellation of 560 fraudulent records and the associated cards. We also are working our way through 3,800 more cases of fraud identified by the facial recognition system during the pilot program.

Our facial recognition system also has allowed us to identify cases where individuals were maintaining multiple identities to fraudulently collect benefits through state entitlement programs.

Converting off-road motorcycles for street use becomes legal in January

Off-road motorcycle

Starting January 1, 2012, owners of off-road motorcycles that modify them to meet all applicable state motor vehicle safety standards can apply for license plates that will allow the modified motorcycle to be used on public streets and highways.

This change is the result of Substitute Senate Bill 5800 passed by the Washington State Legislature in April 2011.  

Off-road motorcycle owners wishing to take advantage of this change must add all of the safety equipment required by this new law and then work with a state-licensed motorcycle dealer or repair shop to complete a Motorcycle Highway Use Declaration form. The licensed dealer or repair shop will inspect the off-road motorcycle and certify that all required equipment has been added.

You can learn more about the details of making an off-road motorcycle legal for street use at the Department of Licensing website.

New online driver license reinstatement service responsible for 36% drop in calls to DOL by folks wanting to know how to get their license back

In August, we reported the launch of a new DOL online service offering customers an easy way to get personalized help to reinstate their driver license. The application gives suspended drivers around-the-clock access to the status of their license and the information needed to fulfill the requirements of a license suspension and reinstating their license online.

By October, calls to the DOL Customer Service Center about driver license reinstatements dropped by 36 percent. Not only does this demonstrate that lots of suspended drivers are taking advantage of this new self-service option, it also allows our customer service representatives to help other folks with driver license questions more quickly.

Beware of online look-alikes

A website claiming to be the ‘official provider of Washington driver license forms’ has gotten the attention of DOL after customers called in after running across the site. The website asks customers to pay $24.95. It’s not clear what that payment will get them, but it won’t renew a driver license.

“The only ‘official provider’ of Department of Licensing forms is the Department of Licensing, and they are free,” says DOL director Alan Haight. He says that the agency website is safe, secure and offers a lot of time-saving services.

Customers should always make sure they’re on DOL’s website, as it always starts with www.dol.wa.gov. Web browsers on the secure portions of the site, like driver license renewal, address change or other services will display that they have a secure connection by using a padlock icon or something similar, as well as displaying https:// as the prefix of the web address. You will also see fortress.wa.gov as the web address on secure state websites.

Some search engines can also return advertisements in the form of ‘sponsored links,’ which can lead users to sites that aren’t what they think they are, so make sure that you know who you are doing business with on the internet, before you give any personal information or click send.